Video Games

Earlier this week, fellow fan site TheForce.net passed along a TOR video from Examiner.com. The video, which contained leaked in-game footage from the alpha build of Star Wars: The Old Republic (TOR), showcased planets, locations, enemies, and more. Recently, however, aspects of the video have been called into question.

Its legitimacy has never been disputed. It would take a lot of time and effort to fake the five minute twenty-seven second video. Many sites have noted that the footage looks too similar to previously seen videos to be a fake. However, what has been disputed is the “leaked” aspect. One commenter on our site, breandan, asserts that the video is “just a compilation of all the developer dispatch (official release) footage.”

Upon looking at the actual video description on YouTube, it appears our friend beandan is correct. Regardless, the video is a nice compilation of all the in-game footage so far. It is organized by planet and contains pieces of John William’s famous score and The Clone Wars soundtrack.

The footage itself looks great. MMOs are usually a generation behind most games when it comes to visual quality, but the stylized look makes The Old Republic look great no matter what the visual settings on your computer are set to. Developer BioWare wants the game to run on most computers and look great in the process. If this video is any indication, they’ve achieved their goal. Another factor in decreased visual quality is the alpha state of the game. The development cycle usually goes from alpha to beta to the final version.* Games in the alpha state often have temporary textures and elements. By the time The Old Republic is released, I have no doubt that the game will look amazing.

Finally, while all the footage is from previously released official videos, there were new pieces I don’t remember seeing before. The Korriban conference room (at 0:33), for example. While it’s possible I just missed it the first time, I like how the video showcases everything in one spot. When I first started watching the video, I was listening to the EUCast on my Zune with my PC speakers muted. I found the video so interesting to watch that I couldn’t help pausing Austin, Andrew and Ted (sorry guys!) so I could listen to the great soundtrack. I couldn’t take my eyes off the video, even though I’d seen the footage before.

Whether or not the footage was leaked, if you’re interested in Star Wars: The Old Republic, you should definitely check out the video.

* Note: there are many other steps in the development process. This is a simplified version.